Heart House News
Love Your Heart First This Valentine's Day
By Samantha Costa
Courier-Post | February 14, 2011
Valentine's Day comes but once a year, but loving yourself should be a year-round affair. What better place to begin than with your heart?
By 2030, the American Heart Association estimates that 40 percent of U.S. adults, or 116 million people, will have one or more forms of cardiovascular disease, according to recent projections.
The population continues to age, grow more obese, and more dependent on fast foods high in salt. Fortunately, there are preventive measures we can take in our daily lives to improve our heart health.
In recognition of National Heart Health Month, we spoke with experts at Heart House Cardiovascular Associates of the Delaware Valley in Haddon Heights, and Our Lady of Lourdes in Camden.
1. Genetics
"The most important thing is to choose your parents carefully," laughed cardiologist Dr. Sanford Gips. "Your genetics are probably the single most important determinant of long-term health."
In the case of Hammonton resident and Pennsauken native Perry Vitale, 44, this was the case. His mother's medical history includes Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, diabetes and a bypass. His father -- not much better.
"I'm an avid gym-goer. I'll schedule appointments around going to the gym. I always went. I've always trained. I never knew I had the problem," explained Vitale, the superintendent for OTS-NJ, a utility construction company in Jackson Township, Ocean County.
On Jan. 12, Vitale was sitting outside his son's basketball practice, impatiently waiting for his son. He grew angry and went home.
"I guess my blood pressure got up so high. The next thing I remember is being in the emergency room. Everything -- it was a daze. I didn't know how I got there; when I got there," explains Vitale.
When doctors did an angioplasty, they didn't like what they saw. Vitale had developed a 50 percent blockage, also known as the "widow maker." Unable to perform a stent procedure, Vitale's doctors suggested surgery. He refused.
Vitale kept thinking, "There's no way this can happen to me." The 5-foot-8-inch, 214-pound man decided, "It's not time for me to check out yet; I got things to do."
And he did. With the help of Dr. Daniel Tarditi, Vitale made a remarkable comeback. After agreeing to go on a cocktail of blood pressure and cholesterol medications, Vitale quit fast food and taking in carbohydrates after going to the gym. A year later, his cholesterol is at 123, he does about two miles of cardio seven days a week, and stays on top of his appointments.
"You do it to stay alive. You do it just like you drink water and you eat food, and you take a shower to stay clean -- you exercise, you eat right. You don't eat garbage," says Vitale.
2. Modest alcohol consumption
Gips says not to be afraid of a couple alcoholic drinks.
"One to two drinks a day is beneficial because it raises your HDL, it raises your good cholesterol. More than one to two drinks a day, it becomes negative," says Gips.
But hasn't it long been said that red wine is heart healthy? According to Dr. Steven A. Levi, that's old news.
"The data basically shows that up to two drinks a night significantly reduces the risk of cardiovascular deaths, in fact all mortality. It's not red wine. That's a false number," says Levi.
The important thing to remember is moderation. "Patients who suffer from palpitations shouldn't (drink). Alcohol in higher doses can be muscle-toxic," says cardiologist Dr. George Mark. (According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, binge drinking is associated with not only alcohol poisoning, but high blood pressure, liver disease, neurological damage, sexual dysfunction, fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and poor control of diabetes.)
3. Fiber
Fiber comes in many forms. If you're not big on fruits and veggies, nuts and seeds, legumes (beans), grains, cereal and pasta are all ways to get fiber in your diet.
"If you increase your fiber intake, that will lower your cholesterol by 6 percent," says Gips. He suggests taking Metamucil daily as a way to lower your cholesterol if you're not getting enough if your daily intake.
4. Down with trans fats
"Trans fats are artificially derived oils that have been engineered for the convenience of industry. A lot of research now says that even small amounts of trans fats in your diet can increase your risk," says Mark.
5. Exercise
"Working out and eating healthy is the best thing you can do. It's hard,especially in the winter," says Carly Mignogna, clinical dietitian at Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center in Camden.
So what kind of exercise is best? Levi says aerobics.
But, "any sort of exercise is good. It's something you have to enjoy doing," he says.
The American Heart Association recommends moderate exercise at 30 minutes a day, five times per week. But, if you have trouble finding time, dividing your time into two or three segments of 10 to 15 minutes per day will work just as well.
Walking programs are the easiest to follow.
6. Quit smoking
It may be hard to believe, but according to the American Heart Association, an estimated 24.8 million men (23.1 percent) and 21.1 million women (18.3 percent) are smokers.
"It's one thing to tell a young person to stop smoking but we see people that have heart attacks, that are on oxygen, people that are really, really sick, and we can't even get them to quit smoking," says Levi.
7. Vitamins/supplements
"Vitamin supplements have been a disappointment," says Gips. "There've been multiple studies in Vitamin E. It failed. All the vitamin E studies failed to show a decrease in heart disease or cancer. We know that people who have a high homocysteine level (amino acids) have a higher risk of coronary disease and peripheral disease. Universally, well-done scientific, placebo-controlled trials of vitamins in the prevention of heart disease have been a failure."
But, what about daily multivitamins? Some may need them if they're not consuming a well-balanced diet. "I think it's reasonable to take a multivitamin," says Gips.
8. Aspirin 81 mg (baby aspirin)
You hear the term "baby aspirin" tossed around pretty frequently at the drugstore. According to Dr. Gips, studies have shown it's beneficial as secondary prevention; meaning, if you've had a heart attack already. Negative side effects can include bleeding ulcers, and/or hemorrhagic stroke. If you're a woman, your risk is higher. "Unless you have multiple risk factors, in women, the evidence of aspirin being more beneficial than harmful is not good in women under 65 years old," says Gips. As always, talk to your doctor to determine if your risk outweighs the benefits.
9. Decrease sodium
"The biggest problem we have is not the salt shaker; it's the food that you buy. Seventy to 80 percent of salt we take in our diet is in foods that we eat," explains Tarditi.
Earlier this year, the American Heart Association requested a call to action for the general public's health on the reduction of sodium that Americans consume.
According to the American Heart Association Circulation Journal, the Coronary Heart Disease Policy Model estimated that reducing dietary salt by 3 grams per day per person would reduce the annual number of new cases of coronary heart disease by 60,000 to 120,000, stroke by 32,000 to 66,000, and myocardial infarction by 54,000 to 99,000, and reduce the annual number of deaths from any cause by 44,000 to 92,000.
10. Check labels
Tarditi says to treat your body as if you were buying an expensive appliance, such as a dishwasher. Is it four stars or five? "You want to read those labels and become an educated consumer. Really reading those labels and even making requests at restaurants really makes a difference. Almost like when you haven't had something sweet in a while knocks you out," says Tarditi.
Mignogna, the dietitian,agrees. "I always tell people to read the food label so they can make the decision on their own," says Mignogna. She says to look for "less than 7 percent of saturated fat, and trans fat -- as close to zero as possible."
11. Statins
You see the commercials for them every day. Statins are a class of drug used to lower cholesterol levels by inhibiting the enzyme HMG-CoA. Some you may have heard of are Lipitor, Zocor, Crestor and Pravachol.
Following a regimen of exercise and eating a healthy diet, coupled with statins can help lower cholesterol and decrease your risk for heart disease.
"There's probably no class of drugs around now that has as much data to show that they are beneficial for preventing heart attacks and strokes as the statins," says Gips.
12. Devices
If you've already got a heart condition, your ICD may be your saving grace. Implantable cardioverter defibrillators treat sudden cardiac arrest and restore a normal heartbeat to a suffering patient.
Physicians at Cardiovascular Associates such as Levi, Gips, Mark and Tarditi face patients with a need for these devices every day.
Automated external defibrillators are available without a prescription, and come in handy at school sports events, courts and cruise ships.
13. Mediterranean Food Diet
Cardiologists and registered dietitians agree: the Mediterranean Food Diet is one to follow.
"It has to do with fat nomenclature. The typical American diet is rich in saturated fat, steak, butter, etc. Then there are what are called monounsaturated fats, which is basically what's in olive oil and chocolate. Those also tend to be heart healthy," says Gips.
But merely replacing butter with olive oil won't make for a meaningful existence, says Gips.
The Mediterranean Food Diet calls for fewer meats and sweets; moderate portions (daily to weekly) of poultry, eggs, cheese, and yogurt; fish at least two times per week; and for basing every meal on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, olive oil, beans, nuts, legumes, seeds, herbs and spices.